like a nervous heart beat

[blouse & skirt - wilfred, blazer - talula, shoes - aldo, belt - moschino, purse - coach, necklace - tiffanys]



something alcoholic with crushed raspberries, and as always, his red wine (ick)

chicken pizza with zucchini, mushrooms, yellow peppers, and sun-dried tomatoes 

smoked and fresh salmon pasta


the boy had his convocation last tuesday,
and typical of our communication style,
i didnt attend because, well, i thought his invitation was a joke
nevertheless, i took him out to dinner to celebrate

honestly, picking a good restaurant at a good price was quite difficult
after searching yelp, open table, and blog to extensively
i made reservations at no less than 4 places
the place we ended up going to was actually the last one i found

the restaurant, 'true', is located in yorkville, and specializes in organic dishes
even the vodka was supposed to be organic, although, i dont know how much id believe that
the place caught my eye becuase it was super pretty and clean looking, although no pictures of the interior because we ate outside
contrary to any misconceptions about organic food, the food was delicious
the service was pretty attentive, and the price really decent
so def thumbs up

in other news... 
after many years of being blatantly excluded, i was finally invited to the aritzia pre-sale
i ended up getting the skirt in the picture, as well as a pair of fcuk printed linen shorts
i also received a big big beach towel as a gift! yay free stuff!

last but not least, i actually really wanted the outfit pictures to show my new bag, but obviously i dont know how to stand
i got the bag in new york, at the coach outlet, for only around $80!!!
i initially saw a different bag with the same print, and asked the lady for a bag with a longer strap, and she brought out this one for me from the back! at that price? instant love
sadly i havent been able to use many of my smaller bags lately, as i've been consistently carrying around books

i'm missing many many blog posts, and this one kinda threw them out of order
hopefully i'll get a chance to put them up soon!
also ladies, please on summerlicious!
<3

wake up in the city that never sleeps

mcmuffin, our breakfast every day


on the way into the city!

broadway




super crowded

there was an elmo too

my favourite ad

radio city music hall


rockefeller

fountain at rockefeller

not sure what this was for, but loved it anyways

apple!

the plaza hotel

looking at the city from inside central park

easily my favourite place in ny







subway station

they look kinda tired don't they?
this motif ran all the way through the station

bite sized cupcakes from this tiny shop window in soho
they were filled too!
i secretly wanted all 9 flavors for myself (forget sharing)

(not where the bite sized cupcakes came from)
ny at night

restaurant row, near broadway

adorable little pizza place

<3

and to finish off the trip, a candy apple!
they actually do cut it for you to make it easier to eat =D

i recently took a short weekend trip to new york city with him and a friend (and her parents, whom i have a parent crush on LOL)
sufficient to say that the time i spent there was definitely not enough
i'm really looking forward to the (hopefully near) future trip where i can get a chance to explore more of the city
for the amount of time we spent there though, we accomplished quite a lot:

- went for a nice walk up broadway. i know most people hate the touristy things, but to be honest, i'm pretty damn excited by them. Im easily amused

- enjoyed central park a bit. this was my first time there, and it definitely won me over. I loved that there was this vast green space in the middle of such a busy city. it seemed like the perfect way to just spend an afternoon

- took the subway to soho. the subway system in new york was crazy complicated, and i was definitely not responsible for the task of navigation. for such a huge system, their fare was only $2.50 ish a ride i think, and even cheaper with a pass. umm, ttc fail much?

- did some light shopping in soho. im still regretting not getting these uggs on sale. we also came across this tiny window selling bite sized cupcakes. they came in 9 flavors, and were decorated with icing and filled. the cake itself was nice and moist, and the small portion size was just perfect. wish i could've brought some back

- wandered around the city at night. came across this small sidestreet filled with restaurants. wish we had enough time to check them out!

- took the train back to the hotel. came across a scary fight at the station, but that probably just enhanced our experience (its ny after all). we were super scared that we were gonna miss our stops, as the train announcer system was really muffled. this however, gave me the chance to discover that all the train stations were charmingly old, with the original style much retained.

we also had a chance to visit the famous woodbury outlet mall. some things were amazingly priced, but others less so. i thought i'd bought a lot at the time, but when i got home i realized it wasnt anything near enough.

as fun as the trip was, it was definitely way too short. hopefully i'd get the chance to take another trip by the end of summer!

<3

Manila Pages: May Book Review

the idea to do a book review has been in my head for a little while now

i love books,
the way they fold in your hand
the weight of the pages as they flip
and i used to be a ferocious reader,
until uni whacked my butt into submission with all those tomes of textbooks
i still have the 'book diary' recording all the books i read for a few years of my childhood

so, in the interest of sticking with things we love
here's my book review for the month of May





This Charming Man - Marian Keys ($10)
Believe it or not, this dog ear-ed copy was brand new when i brought it home from chapters. It's quite a thick little book, very compact.
Set in modern day Ireland, the book tells the story of four women, all connected to a famous Irish politician. The story starts with his recent engagement, and begins with the tale of his girlfriend (who is actually not his fiance). It then moves to an ambitious journalist, a well off housewife (also the journalist's twin sister), and his actual fiance. The book starts off a bit frivolous, but eventually gets pretty heartbreaking, and finishes off nice and hopeful. I personally love books with intertwining story lines, and this one was pretty easy to follow. About half way through I started having trouble putting it down. Some parts are hilarious, others ridiculous, with a good dose of emotions, and is an overall good time.

I would recommend this as a perfect summer read.




Lullibies for Little Criminals - Heather O'Neill ($6.99 @ BMV books, $15 regular price)
I purchased this new at the BMV in the annex. Its got a wider surface, but its not very thick and very flexible.
Set in a grimy Montreal of maybe twenty year ago, this book is probably not what they would call a "feel good" read. However, its very engaging and really catches you off guard. Its told through the point of view of a twelve year old girl (named Baby) living with her drug addict single dad. As is often the case, Baby never realizes that she's living in poverty, and to her money have very little meaning. This book captures the moment in time when you begin to both reject and crave your parent's attention, and your parents start to have absolutely no idea what to do with you. Some parts will break your heart over the injustice of the system. Mostly, it made me realize that circumstances and choices aren't always black and white.

I would definitely recommend this book if you're looking for something with a bit more emotional weight. If you're just looking to escape for an afternoon, you might want to save this for later.



Shopaholic & Baby - Sophie Kinsella ($5.99 @ BMV books, $17 regular price)

Another purchase from BMV books in the annex. I gave this to my mom as part of her mothers day present, but, obviously, sharing is caring =D.
I'd read all the shopaholic books a while back, (in fact i think i have most of them), but besides the main story line, i'd gotten a little fuzzy on the details. Set in present day central London, the book revolves around Becky, a certified shopaholic, and her husband Luke, a successful financial PR entrepreneur. In this book, Becky is pregnant with her first child, and suddenly discover that her famous trendy obstetrician is actually her husbands old girlfriend. It is a typical Shopaholic book, with lots of fun, laughs, and obviously shopping.

I wouldn't consider this her finest work, and I think to really enjoy the book you need to have read the other books in the series first (but don't read them all in a row, Becky gets a bit annoying if you don't take a little break). To me, the book kinda felt like visiting old friends, but I get a feeling that without knowing all the background story, this one wouldn't be very entertaining. And no, watching the movie doesn't count, cause it was nothing like the books. Overall another great quick summer read.



After getting back from school, I re-read the only four Harry Potters I have in my possession ( for whoever has my harry potter and the order of pheonix, I WANT IT BACK!) I'm not going to review them, as mostly everyone has read it (and I think the movies are almost done?), but rest assured; even the second/third/fourth/or fifth time around, they were just as amazing as ever.

I owe this blog many many posts, and hopefully i'll get around to them soon. Sorry for the wait, but hope this one was enjoyable!

<3